"She was spurned" — Seinfeld alum Patrick Warburton reveals Ellen DeGeneres confronted him in public for turning down guest role on her show

Seinfeld actor Patrick Warburton recently revealed he had an awkward confrontation with Ellen DeGeneres after he turned down a guest role on her show. During his Tuesday, July 30, 2024, appearance on SiriusXM's The Spotlight with Jessica Shaw, Warburton discussed a run-in he had with DeGeneres.

Warburton made a guest appearance (three episodes) on DeGeneres's sitcom Ellen, which ran from 1994 until 1998. Warburton, who was ready to move on from guest roles at the time, declined offers to appear on more episodes of the sitcom, claiming to have scheduling conflicts. However, a couple of weeks later, the Rules of Engagement actor was having lunch with a friend at a Beverly Hills restaurant when an unhappy Ellen DeGeneres confronted him.

"And she goes, 'Too big to do my show now, huh?' and I go, 'No, Ellen.' I go, 'I just had a conflict,' which she probably sensed was just bullsh*t and she walked away," Warburton explained.

Following the run-in, the actor realized that turning down Ellen had consequences beyond the sitcom, joking that "there was a reason why (he) was never ever gonna be invited on her talk show" (referring to The Ellen DeGeneres Show).

"Yeah. She was spurned," Patrick added.

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"She was just this remarkable comedian": Patrick Warburton praises Ellen DeGeneres and her sitcom

Ellen was an ABC sitcom centered around a neurotic bookstore owner dealing with her quirky friends and family. Through its five-season run, it was met with critical and commercial success. It was nominated for 10 Emmys, winning 3.

However, after Ellen DeGeneres' character came out as a lesbian in a 1997 episode, its rating began to decline. ABC canceled the show in May 1998. Talking about working with the talk show host, Patrick Warburton stated that he was a huge fan. He added:

"What I recall working on that show was that, as far as crowd work and talking, she was just this remarkable comedian, you know, at the very, very top of the game. She was as good as anybody."

However, the comedian's reaction to his not joining her show left Patrick confused. He explained:

"It was just weird because, you know, when you say you have a conflict and you don't do something, you seem like you're gonna be fine with that. You don't expect the star of the show to walk up to you and call you out on your sh*t."

He reiterated that he knew he wouldn't be invited on the actress' talk show.

After her sitcom was canceled, the comedian helmed her eponymous daytime talk show for 19 seasons (2003–2022). The highly successful show was met with acclaim, even winning 63 Daytime Emmys. The Ellen DeGeneres show was called in 2022 after a BuzzFeed News report accused the host and senior staff members of creating a toxic workplace.

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Ellen Degeneres has not yet publicly reacted to Patrick Warburton's comments.